SAN ANTONIO — Cluster mailboxes across the country are becoming targets for organized crime groups, and postal workers say they’re being attacked for the master keys that open them.
In August, San Antonio police arrested two men accused of stealing mail. They found two counterfeit arrow keys, likely used to access cluster mailboxes.
Days before that, police located another arrow key.
In that incident, officers reported finding a stack of driver’s licenses and credit cards wrapped in a rubber band while making an arrest. The suspect claimed he found them all, but officers discovered an arrow key in one of his pockets.
He told police he bought it at a store.
Police realized these keys were often used for mail theft and notified the U.S. Postal Service, so their law enforcement arm could investigate.
Across the country, police are making discoveries like these, and criminals are getting bolder in how they obtain arrow keys.
Homer Hernandez, the president of the National Association of Letter Carriers Alamo Branch 421, stated that carriers have been robbed of their keys in San Antonio.
Postal workers attacked for master mailbox keys, thieves targeting your information
“We’ve had two robberies in the Dobie Station — gun held, and they took their keys,” Hernandez said.
We asked Hernandez what protections were in place for mail carriers when they’re placed in these situations.
“None,” Hernandez said. “USPS doesn’t have any protections for us out there.”
According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), postal inspectors are working on special operations in areas where robberies and other serious crimes have increased, surging resources into those areas to disrupt and prevent crimes.
But many arrow keys are already in circulation. Experts say they’re being traded between cities and even sold on the dark web.
“The criminals started wearing USPS uniforms and opened the mailboxes in the middle of the day,” said David Maimon, who has been studying arrow key theft for several years. “Prices range from $1,000 to $7,000. The price depends on the location, how many mailboxes it can open, and the population.”
Postal workers attacked for master mailbox keys, thieves targeting your information
Maimon says these aren’t teens getting into trouble; it’s organized crime groups looking to get access to people’s identifying information and their checks.
“They are looking for those checks in order to then wash them and then use them to steal money from victims’ accounts,” Maimon explained. “Stealing identities, setting up bank accounts using those identities, and cashing the checks. It’s a very detailed and elaborate operation.”
As postal workers nationwide continue to report arrow key theft, we asked Hernandez what his advice is for the carriers in his union.
“Give them the key,” he said. “Your life is more important than any arrow key, any piece of mail, or any package.”
In 2023, the U.S. Postal Service announced plans to replace about 49,000 arrow key locks with electronic versions to help deter theft. Hernandez said that hasn’t happened in San Antonio.
City leaders are also looking for ways to help.
District 7 Councilmember Marina Alderete Gavito said her office is exploring ways to add more lighting and possibly replace cluster mailboxes altogether.
Reports of mail theft have soared in recent years causing headaches for thousands of people across the country. (SBG file photo)
“Even though it’s a federal issue, we’re trying to help them out locally to deter this crime,” she said.
District 8’s Ivalis Meza Gonzalez is also working on a program to help neighborhoods replace their cluster mailboxes so they can have more peace of mind.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is investigating these robberies and key thefts.
In August 2024, three Fort Worth men were sentenced to a combined 17 years in federal prison for robbing a letter carrier.
“These defendants brazenly robbed a U.S.P.S. letter carrier at gunpoint in pursuit of an arrow key that would allow them to steal mail from collection boxes,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton.
The GAO is working with the Postal Service’s inspection arm to improve law enforcement resources and the needs of post offices.
To report mail or arrow key theft, file a report with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) online or by calling 877–876–2455. It’s also recommended to contact your local police and, if your mail is stolen from a USPS-owned mailbox, notify your local post office.